Dixon Family Matters
by OwenHarpersGirl
Summary: Raising a child isn't easy, especially when you're trying to do it during the apocalypse. Finding the balance between normal life and survival is something both Daryl and Carol are finding difficult, but they may just be able to make it with the others help. Caryl
1. The Little Dixon

Dixon Family Matters

The Little Dixon

**Disclaimer: I do not own **_**The Walking Dead**_** (sadly)**

**Note #1: Rated for Dixon language**

**Note #2: Sophia is younger in this story. I know in the show she's twelve, but here she's 9.**

"Ya'right lil man?" Daryl asked his son as they sped down the highway and Christian nodded.

"Ya hungry?" Christian nodded again. "A'right." Daryl honked the horn once and Christian watched as his uncle slowly stopped his motorcycle.

"C'mon," Daryl said, climbing out of the truck and lifting his son down.

"Wha's goin' on?" Merle shouted as he walked over, "Why the hell're we stopped?"

"Need food man," Daryl said, lowering the truck hatch and lifting the boy up so he could sit.

"Food? What we need is ta keep movin'" Merle said.

"Sorry Uncle Merle," Christian said quietly and Merle sighed.

"S'a'right buddy," he said. Merle Dixon could be a real ass most of the time, but he'd never been able to stay mad at his nephew from the day he met the boy. Christian was as tough as they came, a real Dixon man. He could cuss and fight as good any Dixon that was for sure. He also never asked for anything. Ever. So Merle knew if his nephew was admitting to being hungry he really must be.

"He ain't had nothin' ta eat since yesterday," Daryl told his brother, "Hardly been outta the truck." He dug through their belongings until finally he found a box of crackers.

"There ya go, eat," Daryl said, handing the box to his son.

"We need ta find a place to set up camp," Daryl said to his brother, "So's we can hunt. Eat some real good."

"We keep goin'," Merle said, "Try an' find a place 'fore dark." Daryl nodded and helped his son back into the truck.

"I'm sorry," Christian said again once they were back on the road.

"The hell ya sorry for?" Daryl asked.

"I know we gotta keep movin'" the boy said.

"Don't worry 'bout it," Daryl said, "If yer hungry ya tell me, a'right?" Christian nodded once. "Why don't you lie down," Daryl went, "Go ta sleep."

Christian nodded again, lying with his head next to his father's leg. He reached his hand up and grabbed onto his dad's pant leg, holding tightly. Daryl rested his hand on Christian's shoulder.

"Go ta sleep," he repeated, "I'll wake ya when we stop."

**So this is going to be my first extended **_**Walking Dead**_** fanfic. I've written a couple one-shots, but this one I'm planning on working on for much longer.**

**Daryl and Merle's speech is something I'm still getting used to and have been reading a lot of other fanfics to see how other people are writing them so I hope I'm doing alright. I'm also trying to get used to Christian and make sure I portray him right. He's basically a mini, five year old version of Daryl, but still keeping that childlike side of him.**

**I had a poll up asking if people wanted to see Daryl with his son right from the start or find the boy later. The results were split pretty evenly so I decided to just do both. The stories won't be the same so if you're interested in reading the other one you can check it out!**

**There will also be a new poll up my profile for this story and my other **_**Walking Dead**_** story so go take a look at that too! If you do vote make sure you vote for the right story. Thanks!**

**I'll be updating this story weekly on Thursdays. Thanks so much for reading and let me know what you think!**


	2. Meeting the Group

Meeting the Group

Daryl slowed the truck down and pulled to a halt behind his brother. Merle got off his bike and walked back to his brother's truck.

"Why we stoppin' now?" he complained, "Boy's asleep. What, are ya hungry now?"

"There's a group of cars through those trees," Daryl said, "Better off in numbers right?"

Merle nodded slowly in agreement, but he didn't look totally convinced. "How ya wanna play this?"

"You stay here with Christian," Daryl said, "I'll go check 'em out."

"Why the hell am I babysittin'" Merle asked gruffly.

"Cause I ain't leavin' him alone here," Daryl said, climbing out of the truck. "An' if you talk to 'em first there's no way they'll agree to this." Merle grunted and shook his head, but for once he didn't argue. Daryl grabbed his crossbow out of the back of the truck and made his way through the trees. He moved silently and the group didn't even realize he was there until he was upon them.

"Walkers are gonna get you people no problem if y'all don' start listenin'," he said and they spun around to face him.

"Who the hell are you?" a man with dark hair and a baseball cap asked. He had a shotgun trained on Daryl.

"Daryl," he replied, "Was drivin' down the road, saw yer cars. What's it, power in numbers or some shit?" The rest of the group had come out to see what was going on now.

"And why should we trust some redneck who's already snuck up on us once?' the man snapped.

"Now hang on Shane," an older man spoke up, stepping forward. "Can you hunt?"

"Hunt," Daryl nodded, "And track. Me an' my brother have taken down some big deer. Could do it again."

"Your brother, where is he?" the old man asked.

"Back a' the truck," Daryl replied.

"Why didn't he come with you?" Shane asked.

"Didn't wanna leave the truck alone," Daryl said.

"Smart," the old man nodded, "I'm Dale, why don't you go tell your brother to bring the truck around."

"Hold up," a large man standing near the back said, "We're just gonna let a couple rednecks come along? He's probably gonna go back to get his 'brother' and come back with a group to steal our shit."

Daryl looked the man up and down immediately disliked him. Standing there with his arm around a woman with short, gray hair and his hand on the shoulder of a little girl, Daryl could immediately tell what sort of man he was.

"I seriously doubt-" Dale started.

"Ed's right," Shane interrupted, "We've got no reason to trust you. So why should we? How do we know you're not here to steal our stuff?"

"We don't have a group," Daryl said, "It's jus' the three of us."

"Three of you?" a blonde woman said from the back, "I thought you said it was just you and your brother?"

"Me an' my brother," Daryl nodded, "An'… my son."

"Your son?" Shane said and Daryl nodded.

"How old is he?" Dale asked.

"Five," Daryl told him, "Look, we ain't here ta steal yer shit, a'right? We'll stay outta yer way, won't even talk ta none of ya. Jus' figure, like I said, numbers right?"

"I say we let 'em come," the blonde woman said, "Come on Shane, if we can't trust each other then there's no hope for any of us."

"Shane," a dark haired woman stepped forward, "Let's give 'em a chance. He says he's got a son… What if it was Carl?"

Daryl assumed the boy standing with her must be Carl and he stared at Shane, waiting for him to make a decision.

"Fine," Shane lowered the gun, "But if you or your brother try anything funny, you're out."

Daryl nodded before walking back into the forest to get his brother and son.

**Daryl's officially met the group! More introductions and questions to be answered over the next couple chapters. So far this is before the season premier, but we'll get there eventually.**

**Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!**

**Poll is up on my profile so if you want to vote on who you want to live then go check it out!**


	3. Question!

**I have a question for everyone reading this story and I would really appreciate any feedback!**

**I have two **_**Walking Dead**_** stories and currently have a poll on my profile asking who you guys would like to see live in those stories. I've had a few people vote and now realize that I don't know who was voting for which story.**

**I was thinking I would put all the names in the poll twice and then put the name of the story in brackets, like this:**

**Beth (Dixon Family Matters)**

**Beth (Safe Keeping)**

**You would be able to vote for as many characters as you want, and could vote for both stories. It would just be a bit easier to see the results if I could tell which story each vote was for.**

**Please let me know! Thank you so so much! **


	4. Can't We Stay?

Can't We Stay?

Daryl returned in his truck a few moments later with his brother following slowly on his motorcycle as they made their way through the trees. Merle slowly climbed off his bike and watched as his brother exited the truck, lifting Christian down.

"This is my brother, Merle," Daryl said, pointing to him, "This here's Christian."

"Why don't you guys set up camp and then we can talk," Dale suggested, "I'm sure everyone has a lot of questions."

Daryl nodded once and handed a couple things to Christian before leading the boy over to a spot a little ways away from the others. But Merle didn't move.

"You in charge round here old man?" he said, "Cause I don't see us lasting too long out here with some senior citizen leading the charge."

"Actually, I'm in charge around here," Shane stepped forward.

"Great, so now I gotta listen to Officer Friendly and have you breathing down my neck all the time?" Merle ground out and Daryl closed his eyes and sighed. he might as well pack up the truck and drive off now.

"Look, everyone has their jobs here," Shane said, "Everyone does their share, it's the way things work around here."

"The way I see it, the on'y job anyone has anymore is looking after themselves."

"Your brother doesn't seem to see it that way," the blonde woman said.

"I'm pretty certain I would know more about how my brother sees things than some blonde w***e," Merle said and several members of the group opened their mouths to retaliate, but a small voice spoke before they could.

"Shut up Uncle Merle!"

They all turned and saw the little boy, Christian, standing there.

"What didja say ta me boy?" Merle said, glowering at his nephew and Christian shuffled his feet, looking nervous. His uncle had never laid a hand on him, but he still didn't like making Merle angry.

"They're going to make us leave," he said, "And I don' wanna... I don' wanna sleep in the truck again. I wanna stay here. Please Uncle Merle? Can't we stay?" Christian looked at him hopefully and Merle scowled before walking over to where his brother was standing. Without another word he sat with his back against a tree and faced away from the group.

Daryl looked at Shane who nodded and turned away while Daryl went back to setting up their campsite. Christian smiled before running over to help his dad.

The group watched for a while before trickling away. They could ask their questions around the fire tonight.

**There's chapter three! Merle's only been with the group for five seconds and he's already causing trouble.**

**Thanks so much for reading and let me know what you think!**

**Poll is still up so go check it out if you want! Thanks!**


	5. Safety in Numbers

Safety in Numbers

Shane, Dale, Lori, Andrea, Carl, Ed, Carol, Sophia, Amy, Jacqui, Glenn, T-Dog, and Jim. That was who sat around the fire tonight. Well, most o them, Daryl couldn't actually remember all their names and he sure as hell didn't remember who was who. This group of people who probably wouldn't have even spoken if the dead hadn't started walking. but maybe that was good. Cause there was no way any of these people would've talked to him or Merle if the world hadn't fallen aprt. And yet here they were, sitting around a few, with each and every one of them staring at him and his brother...

Daryl shifted uncomfortably under their gaze and apparently Dale sensed his discomfort.

"So," he said, leaning forward, "How long you boys been on the road?"

"Few days," Merle said.

"Feels like forever," Christian said quietly.

"Course it did, ya slept the whole time," Daryl said and the boy shrugged.

"Where were you headin'?" Shane asked, "I'm guessing you weren't looking for a group?"

"Jus' drivin'," Daryl mumbled, "Not really sure where we goin'. Away from the things tryin' ta eat us."

"Away from those things is usually the best way to go," Glenn said, speaking to them for the first time.

"How long you guys planning on staying?" Shane asked.

"Why? What's a matter Officer Friendly? Want us gone already?" Merle sniped.

"Keep that up and I might just say yes," Shane replied.

"I think everyone needs to settle down," Andrea butted in. She turned to look at Merle and Daryl.

"Look, with everything that's happened, trusting new people isn't always easy, especially around the kids. I'm sure you can understand that." Daryl nodded once and Andrea turned her attention to Shane.

"But, we'll never know if we can trust each other if we don't try. None of us trusted each other when we first met, but like Daryl said, there's power in number. There's _safety_ in numbers. You said you can hunt?" She directed this last part at Daryl.

"Both can," he said.

"Think you could hunt something in these woods?" Dale asked, "Something we could eat?"

Daryl nodded, but said nothing and looked at Shane again.

"Everyone does their share, right?" she said, "I think these guys could be a real help.

"I agree with Andrea," Carol spoke for the first time.

"Do ya now?" Ed said.

"Yes," Carol said, her voice much quieter now, "Andrea's right, how can we trust them if we don't even give them a chance? Besides, are we really going to send them out to fend for themselves when they've got a child with them?"

"We've taken pretty good care of him so far," Merle said and Daryl glanced at his brother. It had always been him and Merle against the world. but with the dead walking... even Daryl would admit - to himself, not to anyone else - that having more people around who could protect Christian made him feel slightly less on edge. Now if Merle would just keep his trap shut...

"I think they should stay too," Lori said, "What if it was Carl? Or Sophia? Or Eliza or Louis? I say we give them a chance."

Shane huffed, "Fine, but nothing funny, got it?"

"Aye, aye, cap'n," Merle saluted mockingly before he stood and sauntered over to their tent.

"C'mon," Daryl said quietly to Christian. The boy hopped up and followed his dad over to where his uncle lay.

"I don't like this," Shane said.

"Just give them a chance," Andrea said.

"A chance is all they're gonna need ta rob us blind," Shane said, "I don't trust 'em. Either of 'em. I can already tell merle is going to be a problem."

"Then forget Merle for a second," Dale said, "Daryl seems a lot more willing to cooperate and he's got a five year old to think of. I reckon he cares enough about that boy to make sure he doesn't cause trouble."

"They're rednecks," Ed stumbled to his feet, "They don't care about nothin'."

WALKINGDEADWALKINGDEADWALKINGDEADWALKINGDEADWALKING

Over at Daryl and Merle's tent, there was a similar conversation going on.

"I don't like this," Merle said as his brother and nephew sat down.

"Tough," Daryl grunted.

"Look, they already think we're gonna rob 'em, so why not just do it?" Merle said.

"No way," Daryl said, "Look, we don't gotta talk to 'em or nothin'-"

"Naw, we just gotta hunt for 'em," Merle snapped, "Lazy pricks."

"We'd be huntin' anyway," Daryl countered, "So wha's it matter? Not like us three could eat a whole deer 'fore the meat went bad. 'sides, they got kids tha' need ta eat."

"Forget the kids!" Merle said.

"Should I forget yer nephew too then?" Daryl challenged, "Huh? My son, should I forget him?" Merle was silent.

"Tha's what I thought," Daryl sighed, "We ain't robbin' 'em. If we're here, you and me can go huntin' and Christian can stay here with people, where it's safe."

"No way!" the boy protested, "I ain't stayin' here! I'm comin' with you! I can hunt too!"

"Not this time," Daryl shook his head, "we don' know how things are in this area yet. I ain't walkin' in blind with ya." Christian scowled and kicked at the dirt.

"Hey, c'mon," Daryl said, "Once we know the layout round here then ya can come, but until then yer stayin' here."

"Who ya gonna leave 'im with?" Merle asked, "The one who pointed a shotgun at us? Or how about blondie? She seemed ta like ya.

"I'll talk ta the old guy, Dale," Daryl said, "He seems a'right." Merle scoffed and shook his head, but Daryl ignored him s Christian started yawning.

"Come on kid, bed," he said, standing and lifting his son to his feet. They walked over to the tent and Daryl got his son settled before laying down next to him.

"We're not gonna steal from 'em, are we daddy?" Christian asked quietly.

"Naw buddy," Daryl replied, "We ain't doin' that. We're gonna stick around here for a while."

**Alright, chapter four! For some reason every time I typed Christian's name I kept spelling it 'Christmas' so if I did that anywhere let me know and I'll fix it!**

**Thanks so much for reading! Check out the poll and let me know what you think!**


	6. Babysitting

Babysitting

The next morning, Daryl was up earlier than most of the others for which he was glad. The only other one who seemed to be up was Dale, which Daryl would soon learn was a common thing, for the older man to be awake before the others.

"Hey Daryl," the man greeted, "First night okay?"

"Yeah, fine," Daryl shrugged, "Listen, I know we jus' got here and you people don' like us or trust us or whatever-"

"I don't know you well enough to like or dislike you yet," Dale said, "And trust will come with time."

"Right," Daryl said, "Well, I was wonderin' if I could leave Christian with ya? Me an' Merle were gonna go huntin', but I don' wanna bring him along yet. Not 'til I know the area better... Ye seemed to be the on'y one givin' us a chance here so..."

"I'll keep an eye on him," Dale said and Daryl nodded his thanks.

"He, uh, he's pretty sufficient on his own," Daryl said, "Jus' don' wanna leave him with a bynch a people he don' know. Don' really got a choice though."

"Don't worry," Dale said, "I'll take care of him. No one at this camp would hurt a child, even if they don't trust you yet."

Daryl nodded again and walked back to his tent, planning on waking his brother up to get him ready for hunting. They were finally ready an hour later and when Daryl walked back over to the RV with his son at his side, everyone else was up. He tried to ignore the looks everyone gave him as Dale climbed down off the top of the RV.

"Ye listen ta Dale, a'right?" Daryl said.

"I will," Christian replied, "Still don' see why i can't come with ya."

"Not yet," Daryl said for the millionth time, "Later. When we know the area better I'll take ya."

Christian nodded reluctantly and watched miserably as his father walked away to join his uncle and the two Dixons walked into the forest.

"Come on," Dale said to the forlorn boy, "How'd you like to help me keep watch?"

"Okay," Christian sighed and shrugged his shoulders. Christian started up the ladder with Dale following closely behind, making sure he didn't fall. It only took about half an hour for Christian to cheer up. Dale had him looking through the spare binoculars he had, but the boy wasn't looking for walkers, he was looking for birds.

Dale had a book on ornithology and had figured that with hunters for a father and uncle, the boy would probably pick up on what he was seeing pretty quickly. And he'd been right. Christian was a natural and he was having a great time pointing out all the birds he saw to Dale.

"Do ya think I can show my daddy some when him and Uncle Merle get back?" Christian asked.

"I don't see why not," Dale smiled.

"Hey you two," Amy said, "Breakfast is ready if you want some."

"Why don't you head on down and get some," Dale said.

"Wha' 'bout you?" Christian asked.

"I'll get some soon," Dale smiled, "You go on."

Christian started down the ladder and when he was close enough Amy lifted him down. She led him over to the others and a woman with grey hair handed him a plate of food.

"Thanks," Christian said quietly. Everyone was staring at him and suddenly wished his daddy or uncle was there with him. He walked back over tot he RV and saw down, leaning against the tire. He ate quietly and quickly, wanting to get back tot eh sanctuary that was the roof of the RV.

"You don't half to sit over here by yourself."

Christian looked up, squinting against the sun, to see the same woman who'd given him his breakfast standing there.

"No one wants me over there," he mumbled and she squatted down.

"Sure we do-" she stared, but Christian cut her off.

"No ya don't," he shook his head adamantly, "I heard my uncle say las' night that ya didn' wan' us here. 'sides, my daddy don' like me talkin' ta people I don' know."

She looked thoughtful for a moment, "My name's Carol. The little girl over there is my daughter, Sophia. That boy she's sitting with is Carol and the woman next to him is his mother, Lori. I know that's probably a lot for you to remember."

"I can remember," he said quickly, "I ain't stupid." Carol didn't say anything for a moment.

"I know your father left you with Dale, but when breakfast us done me and Lori do some schoolwork with Carl and Sophia. Would you like to join us?"

"I'm supposed ya stay with Dale," Christian commented.

"How about I sit with you?" Dale suggested, climbing down from the RV, "Glenn's taking over watch for a bit."

Christian thought for a moment before finally nodding.

"Alright," Carol smiled, "Just come on over when you're done eating, okay?"

Christian nodded, staring down at his plate. Dale grabbed his own food and then slowly lowered himself down next to the boy.

"I know trusting new people can be hard," Dale said, "But Carol's really nice and I think you'll get along well with Sophia and Carl."

Christian nodded again, but still remained quiet. Dale sighed, but he was so different than he had been five minutes ago on top of the RV so Dale decided to try a new tactic.

"You excited to do some schooling with the others?" he asked, but Christian only shrugged. "Come on, reading and writing! Maybe even some mathematics. It'll be fun!"

"I can't read," Christian mumbled, "Or write. An' what are mat-matmatics?"

Dale could've slapped himself. Of course the boy couldn't read yet, he was only five! And here he was going on about it!

"Well, that's alright," Dale assured him, "Because the great thing about school is that you can learn all those things."

"But what if they laugh at me?" Christian asked, looking up at him with wide, blue eyes.

"No one'll laugh at you," Dale said, "Now come o, let's go learn something! Think of all the stuff you can show your dad when he gets back."

Dale knew the boy was sold then. Christian got to his feet and slowly made his way over to where Carol, Lori, Carl, and Sophia sat.

"E-Excuse me?" Christian said, suddenly feeling inexplicably shy. She turned to him, smiling kindly. "Can- Can ya teach me ta read?"

Carol's smile widened and she helped him into a chair. Dale sat on his other side and watched as Carol wrote out the first half of the alphabet.

"Before we teach you to read, you need to know the letters," she said and Christian watched and listened in fascination as she went over each one with him.

**Chapter five and we've got some Carol-Christian bonding going on. Also some Dale-Christian. I don't know why, but I just have this idea in my head that Dale would've been the one to really give Daryl and Merle a chance when they first joined the camp.**

**Today marks me being on for six years! It's so crazy to me that I've been writing stories here for six years. It started off as just something I did for fun because I loved writing so much and it's literally inspired me to pursue writing as a career. Thank you so so much to everyone who has read any of my stories as well as to anyone who has favourited/followed/reviewed! It means so much to me so thank you!**

**Thanks so much for reading and let me know what you think!**


	7. The Alphabet

The Alphabet

Daryl and Merle trudged back to camp slowly. Merle was dragging a deer behind him while Daryl carried the squirrels and rabbits they had caught.

"Not a bad haul baby brother," Merle smirked.

Daryl nodded in agreement, "Should feed the group for a couple days."

Merle sighed, but said nothing. The older Dixon still wasn't thrilled with the idea of hunting for everything. They had just broken through the trees when they heard a shout.

Christian came barrelling towards them and Daryl quickly shifted the squirrels to one shoulder so he could lift his son.

"Daddy! Guess what?" Christian said, sounding more excited than Daryl had heard in a long time. he continued before Daryl could utter a word. "Dale showed me how ta spot birds with binoculars an' Carol's teaching me how ta read!"

"She is?" Daryl said.

"Uh huh, can I show ya?" Christian asked, "I know the whole first half of the alphabet!"

"Sure bud," Daryl chuckled, "Why don't you should me while we skin these?"

"Okay!"

Daryl listened as Christian repeated the letters A-L over and over again. School had never been a big affair in the Dixon house for as long as Daryl could remember. But before the world had fallen apart, Daryl had hoped Christian would have a better time at school than he did. Now the dead were walking around and all thoughts of educating Christian in anything but survival had gone out the window.

"How was that daddy?" Christian asked after finishing it again.

That was great bud," Daryl said proudly and Christian beamed at him. "Did ya thank Carol for teachin' ya?"

Christian thought for a moment. "I think so," he said finally, "But I'm gonna go do it again!" He ran off and Daryl chuckled.

"Don't see why he wants ta read so badly," Merle said, walking over, Not like we got anythin' fer him ta read out here."

"If he really wants ta read I'll find sumthin' fer him ta read," Daryl said, "He ain't been this excited in ages so don't say nothin' to 'im." Merle held up his hands in surrender and walked away just as Christian ran back.

"I told her!" he said and then began reeling off the alphabet again. They eventually got the squirrels and rabbits cooked and everyone say around their fires to eat. Daryl, Merle, and Christian sat away from the others again, but after a while Shane walked over.

"Ye here ta tell us ta leave?" Merle asked, "We fed ya and now we gotta go?"

"No, actually, I was coming to say thanks for bringing back this stuff," Shane said, "Everyone's real happy about it."

Daryl nodded at Shane once and the man nodded back.

"We ain't gonna kick you out," Shane said and his eyes shifted from Daryl to Christian. "This seems like a pretty good set up for everyone." Daryl nodded again in understanding and Shane walked away as Merle snorted.

"Ya, we'll see how long that lasts." He stood and walked into their tent. Daryl sighed, rolling his eyes as Christian scooted closer to him, leaning against his dad's leg tiredly.

"I don't wanna leave daddy," Christian mumbled, "I like it here."

"I know bud, we ain't leaving," Daryl said quietly. Christian drifted off to sleep and Daryl sat quietly, staring at the low burning fire. He wasn't sure how long he sat there, but eventually Carol walked over and he realized most people had gone to bed.

Daryl looked up at the mousy woman, waiting for her to speak.

"Um, sorry to bother you," she said, "I just wanted to make sure it was okay with you that I taught Christian to read. I know I should've asked you first... It's just he was so excited and-"

"It's fine," Daryl interrupted, "Teach him whatever ya want."

"Oh, okay," Carol said, looking relieved.

"He ain't never been ya school before and it don' look like he'll be goin' now so if ya don' mind-"

"I don't," she said immediately, "He's a sweet boy. I like teaching him. He learns fast."

"Good thing in the world now, huh?" Daryl said and Carol nodded, smiling slightly.

"Uh, I should get back, my daughter needs to go to bed. Sorry again for bothering you." She started to walk away.

"Hey!" Daryl called after her and she turned around, "Ya ain't botherin' me."

She nodded again, giving him an actual smile this time, before walking over to her daughter and going in to their tent.

**So, even though Christian is this little rough and tough mini Daryl, he's still a kid and I figure he'd still be pretty pleased with himself for learning his alphabet.**

**Also, there is a chance Sophia may die in one these stories. I know a lot of people want her to live (I've had more votes for her to live than any other character) and she will live for sure in at least one of them, possibly both. I just haven't totally decided yet. I can promise that if she does die in one of them, other characters that are dead in the show will survive in this.**

**Thanks so much for reading! New chapter will be up next week! Let me know what you think!**


	8. Heading to Atlanta

Heading to Atlanta

A couple days later and Daryl was getting ready to go hunting again. This time, however, his brother wouldn't be going with him. Merle was a short ways from him, getting ready to go on a run to Atlanta.

"Do ya have ta go Uncle Merle?" Christian asked.

"Ya bud, we need supplies," Merle said, not looking up.

"But ya go hunting ta get food," Christian argued, "That's more important! Can't ya jus' do that?"

"Naw, gonna go see wha' I can find in Atlanta," Merle said. Daryl watched his son carefully and saw the boy's face fall. He looked around himself for a moment before he finally found something to throw at his brother.

"Wha-" Merle turned, but before he could say anything, Daryl pointed to Christian. Merle followed his brother's gaze and sighed. He went over to his nephew and sat down.

"Wha's a matter?" he asked.

"What if you go and somethin' bad happens?" Christian asked, "What if ya don' come back?"

"'m gonna come back kid," Merle said.

"But what if ya don'?" Christian said, looking up at him.

"Wha' do we always say? Huh?" Merle asked, "Ain't nothin' can kill a Dixon..."

"But a Dixon," Christian finished with a sigh, "But now there's dead people walkin' around and they could get ya! I don' want 'em ta get ya!"

"Ain't nothin' gonna get me," Merle told him, "Ye don' gotta worry 'bout tha', a'right?"

Christian nodded, but still didn't look pleased.

"What're ye gonna do today?" Daryl asked his son, trying to distract him.

"Carol's gonna show me how ta write letters, Christian said quietly, "She said soon I'll be able ta write my name."

"Well, that'll be fun, won't it?" Daryl asked, trying to sound enthusiastic, but Christian merely shrugged.

DIXONFAMILYMATTERSDIXONFAMILYMATTERSDIXONFAMILYMATTERS

It was later that day and the group heading for Atlanta were just about to set off.

"Don' do nothin' stupid," Daryl said and Merle laughed, clapping him on the back.

"Relax baby brother," he said and then reached over to ruffle Christian's hair. "Ye be good. An' don' worry 'bout me." Christian nodded, trying to look tougher than he actually felt at that moment. The group left and Daryl led his son over to the RV. He was going hunting overnight and Dale had volunteered to watch Christian again.

"Ye listen ta Dale, a'right? An' Carol," Daryl said.

"I will," Christian sighed, "Yer gonna come back right?"

"Ya, I'll be back," Daryl said, "I'll try an' be back tomorrow, but if I'm not don' panic, a'right?"

"I won't," Christian said and then hugged his dad tightly before running over to Carol.

"I should be back tomorrow," Daryl called up to Dale, "But if I'm not-"

"He'll be looked after, don't you worry," Dale assured him. Daryl nodded once before walking off into the forest.

Dale looked over at where Christian sat with Carol, Lori, Sophia, and Carl and smiled. Daryl had nothing to worry about, Christian would be well looked after here.

**I like the idea of Merle being a caring uncle. Even if he is kind of an asshat to everyone, I like the idea that he takes care of his nephew.**

**Also, I apologize for any spelling errors. It's a bit more difficult to spell check when you're deliberately spelling some words wrong as part of speech. I hope I'm going okay with the way Merle, Daryl, and Christian speak. I've read a lot of fanfics and watched the episodes over and over to try to get right so I hope I am.**

**Finally, I'm going to be adding the most recent character death from Season 5B to the poll so you guys can vote if you want this person to live. I've been waiting a couple weeks to make sure people had seen the episode so if you haven't yet be warned that there will be spoilers in the poll as of tomorrow.**

**Thanks so much for reading this chapter! Make sure to check out the poll on my profile and vote!**

**Let me know what you think!**


	9. Where is He?

Where's Is He?

Daryl didn't return the next day. Or the next. Or even the next. And it was getting harder to distract Christian.

"Do you want to look for more birds today?' Dale asked the boy, but Christian shook head, keeping the binoculars trained on the forest.

"He'll be back soon," Dale tried to assure him.

"How do ya know?" Christian asked, "He said he'd back an' he's not. Uncle Merle said he'd be back an' he's not."

"You're right," Dale said reluctantly, "We don't know happened in Atlanta, but I'm sure they'll be back soon. As for your dad, he said that if wasn't back you shouldn't worry, right?"

Before Christian could say anything, a loud, screeching siren reverberated around them.

"What is that?" Lori asked and Shane ran over to the RV.

"Dale?" he called up to the older man as Dale scanned the trees with his binoculars.

"Nothing," Dale shook his head, "Wait a minute."

"What is it?" Amy asked.

"Stolen car by the looks of it," he replied. Sure enough, the speeding, screeching car pulled into their camp and Glenn got out, smiling widely.

"Would you turn that thing off?" Dale shouted at him. Christian stood next to him, covering his ears against the noise.

"Turn it off!" Shane yelled.

"I don't know how," Glenn said, opening the hood so Shane could look as Dale and Christian climbed down and walked over. Shane and Dale managed to get the siren to stop just as a truck pulled up behind them and the rest of the Atlanta group pulled out.

Christian stood back and watched Amy ran to hug her sister and Morales reunited with his family. He watched as Carl ran to hug his dad, which confused Christian because Carl had told him his dad was dead. Everyone around him was so happy to be reunited with their friends and family. Every except Christian. The little boy stepped forward, staring at the truck as if expecting his uncle to jump out. He turned to face the others.

"Where's my uncle?" he asked loudly and everyone fell silent.

"Where's my uncle?" Christian repeated, "Where is he?" He looked at Andrea and Jacqui and Glenn and everyone else who'd just come back from Atlanta and saw how sad they looked.

"Christian-" Andrea stepped towards him, but he ignored her and took off to the tent he had been sharing with his dad and uncle. He lied on the sleeping bag, crying and wishing his dad was back.

**So, without giving away any spoilers for anyone who hasn't seen it, can I just say how much I loved Sunday's episode? The whole episode had me on the edge of my seat and the Daryl-Carol interaction was adorable.**

**Thanks so much for reading this chapter! Let me know what you think!**


	10. I Ain't Leavin' Ya

I Ain't Leavin' Ya

Christian woke up to the sound of shouting. He didn't remember falling asleep and he didn't know how long it had been, but he definitely knew that voice.

"You tied my brother to a roof? And you left him there!" Daryl shouted. He paced back and forth, breathing heavily. He'd spent the past three days out in the woods tracking a deer, only for a walker to get the damn thing. Now he gets back to camp and finds this new guy, Rick Grimes, telling him they had abandoned his brother to the geeks in Atlanta. Merle was a dick, but even he didn't deserve that. Before he could think on it too much though, a voice had cried out behind him.

"Daddy!"

Daryl turned just in time to catch Christian as the boy flew into his arms. Daryl lifted his son up, holding him close as Christian wrapped his arms around his dad's neck.

"Uncle Merle's gone!" Christian cried, his voice muffled from where he had his face pressed into Daryl's shoulder.

"Shhh, I know," Daryl hushed him.

"He's gone! He told me not ta worry! He said he'd come back and now Uncle Merle's gone!" Christian sobbed and Daryl ran his hand up and down the little boy's back. He threw a dirty look at the rest of the group before walking over to his tent and going inside.

"Shhh, shhh," Daryl hushed his son, sitting down. "It's a'right."

"No it's not!" Christian cried, "Ya said ya'd be back! Ya said ya'd come back an' ya didn't! Uncle Merle said he'd come back and now he-he's gone!"  
>"I know bud, I'm sorry," Daryl said, "It took me longer than I thought to find something."<p>

Christian continued to cry, pressing his face into Daryl's shirt and Daryl was suddenly reminded how young Christian actually was. Even before the world went to shit, Christian was used to going with very little. He had more than Daryl and Merle had, both men had made sure of that. But still, he definitely didn't live like most five year olds. However, it was times like these when Daryl was reminded that Christian was only a child.

"Shhh," Daryl whispered, "'m sorry bud. It's gonna be a'right. 'm gonna go ta Atlanta, a'right? And 'm gonna look fer Uncle Merle."

"But what if ya don' come back?" Christian whispered.

"I will," Daryl said, "I don' know when. It could take one day or two or whatever. But I ain't leavin' ya kid, understand?"

Christian nodded and snuggled closer into his father's hold.

"Go ta sleep kid," Daryl murmured, "'m gonna talk ta the others. ye get some sleep."

"Don' leave 'fore I wake up, 'kay?" Christian mumbled sleepily.

"I won'," Daryl assured him as he lied the little boy down and covered him up. He sat there for a moment as Christian drifted off before going out to deal with the people who had abandoned his brother.

**I won't actually be showing the group going and looking for Merle, I'm going to be focusing on Christian in the camp. More will start happening with Caryl and other members of the group once they leave the Quarry. The CDC/Greene farm is where things will start veering off from the show.**

**Thanks so much for reading and let me know what you think!**


	11. Laundry Drama

Laundry Drama

**Warning: Violence**

"Hey."

Carol looked up and saw Daryl standing there.

"Hi," she said quietly.

"Could ya do sumthin' fer me?" Daryl asked and Carol looked at him in surprise.

"Yeah, sure," she said, "What do you need?"

"Can ya take care of Christian while I go ta Atlanta?" he asked.

"Of course," she smiled at him. "I've got some laundry and stuff to do today, but I can keep an eye on him. And I'm sure Sophia would love to have someone to play with today."

"Thanks," Daryl nodded at her, "He's over by the RV eating righ' now, but I'll tell him ta listen ta ya. So..."

"Alright, don't worry," Carol smiled at him at him, "I'll take care of him."

Daryl nodded again and then walked away.

"Hey kid," he said, crouching next to his son.

"Are ya leavin' now?" Christian asked.

"Ya, but Carol's gonna look after ya today, a'right?" Daryl said.

"Okay," Christian replied, "Are ya gonna find Uncle Merle?"

"Gonna try bud," Daryl ruffled Christian's hair as he stood, "Be good now." He walked away and climbed into the van they'd be taking to Atlanta, honking at the others to hurry up.

Carol walked over to Christian just as they left and sat down.

"Alright, so I'm going to be doing some laundry today with Andrea, Amy, and Jacqui, but you can play with Sophia if you want to," Carol said.

"Can I help you?" Christian asked.

"You want to help with the laundry?" Carol asked and Christian nodded.

"I helped daddy clean up sometimes when we were at home," he told here, "Uncle Merle doesn't like cleaning."

"I think it would be great if you helped!" Carol said cheerfully and Christian smiled at her.

"Helped with what?" Andrea asked, walking by.

"Christian's going to help us with the laundry today," Carol said.

"He is?' Andrea smiled at him, "Well, with his help we should have it done in no time."

He beamed up at her before following the four women down tot he water and Carol was pleased to see he wasn't worrying about his dad and uncle. They sat by the water, talking and laughing as they washed the group's clothes. Christian didn't actually do much washing, but all the women made sure he was included. Everything was going great until Ed walked over.

"What's all the noise about?" the man asked.

"Just swapping war stories Ed," Andrea said, but the large man didn't leave. He continued to hover over them and Christian started shifting nervously. There weren't a lot of people he was scared of. He was a Dixon and his uncle had always told him Dixons weren't scared of nothing! Plus, after growing up with his Uncle Merle, a person would have to be _really _terrifying to scare Christian. Ed Peletier definitely fell into the category of really terrifying. He didn't look up at the man, trying to focus on helping Carol. He shifted a little closer to her which Carol and the other women noticed.

"Problem Ed?" Andrea asked.

"None that concerns you," Ed said, staring at Carol, "You should focus on your work. This ain't no damn comedy club."

Carol didn't say anything and they tried to ignore him, but Andrea could.

"Tell you what Ed, you don't like how your laundry's done you are more than welcome to do it yourself." Andrea threw the shirt at him and Ed threw it back with much more force.

"It ain't my job missy," he said and then looked at Christian, "It ain't his job either. Jus' cause his daddy ain't here don't mean you ladies can turn him into some sort of pussy. C'mere." He made to grab Christian, but the boy moved back, falling into the water, just as Carol stepped in front of him.

"Leave him alone Ed," she said and he glared at her murderously.

"What did you say?"

"I-I-" she stammered, cowering under his gaze.

Amy had helped Christian out of the water and now the boy was staring up at Ed in hatred. He hated the man who had made him fall in the lake and he hated the man who was scaring Carol. She was the nicest lady Christian had ever met and Ed was awful to her and Sophia!

Christian wasn't scared any more. Well, not as much as he had been. No, now he was _mad_. He let go of Amy's hand and stomped past Carol. Ed didn't even notice the little boy was there until he felt a sharp pain in his ankle as Christian kicked him as hard as he could.

"You little-" Ed growled, reaching down and grabbing Christian's arm before the boy could move away.

"Let me go!" Christian shouted.

"Ed, stop it!" Carol screamed as she and the others tried to get Ed to let the little boy go. Ed slapped Carol and she stumbled back, Jacqui catching her before she could fall over. Before they could do anything more though, Shane had come over and dragged Ed away, beating on him.

"Shane stop it!" they started screaming, but Shane just kept the punches coming.

"I'm sorry!" Christian cried and Carol lifted him up. "I'm sorry!"

"Shhh, it's not your fault," she hugged him tightly. "Shhh, it's alright now."

**Every time I watch season one I rage at Ed, especially in this scene. I figured Christian wouldn't really want to stand for that.**

**Thanks so much for reading and let me know what you think! Go check out the poll on my profile and let me know who you want to see live!**


	12. The Quarry

The Quarry

It was later that night and Christian was sitting away from the others. Carol left Sophia sitting next to Lori and went over to him.

"Hey sweetheart, you alright?" she asked, crouching down. Christian shrugged.

"You know, you don't have to be scared of Ed," Carol said quietly, "I'm not going to let him hurt you again and when your dad finds out..."

"I'm not scared," Christian murmured.

"No? Then why are you upset?"

"It's my fault he hit ya," Christian mumbled.

"What?" Carol said in shock, "How was that your fault?"

"I kicked him and made him angry," Christian said, "Then he hit ya."

"Oh, Christian, that wasn't your fault," Carol said gently, "Ed isn't... He isn't a good man. Whether you kicked him or not, he would have done something bad."

"I wanted him to leave ya alone," Christian looked up at her, "He was scaring ya and that ain't fair. Ya didn't do anythin'."

"Unfortunately some people don't see it that way," Carol rubbed his back, "But you know what? I'm grateful that you defended me. That was really brave of you."

"Daddy says we need ta protect each other more than ever now," Christian said and Carol smiled. "He said we 'specially need ta protect people we care about."

"Yeah?" Carol said and Christian nodded. Carol wrapped her arm around his shoulders and hugged him gently. She had half been expecting him to pull away, but instead he squeezed her tightly.

"Come on, let's go sit by the fire and warm up," she said, taking his hand and walking over. He sat between her and Sophia, eating fish and laughing with the others. Everything felt good again. Even though his dad and uncle weren't here right now, things seemed to be okay.

Until, in an instant, they weren't. A scream pierced the air and they all turned to see a walker attacking Amy. Everyone panicked. Lori grabbed Carl and reached a hand out for Carol, gesturing for the other woman to follow.

Carol stood and went to grab Sophia and Christian, but the little boy was gone.

"Where's Christian?" she asked, gripping her daughter's shoulder.

"He ran!" Sophia cried, "I'm sorry!"

"Shhh, it's okay," Carol hugged her daughter close and pulled her along behind Lori, Carl, and Shane. She kept looking around, trying to find the youngest Dixon.

"Shane, what do we do?" Lori cried.

"Stay close!" Shane shouted, "Get to the RV!"

"Momma, look!" Sophia shouted and Carol looked, feeling the blood drain from her face. Christian was standing there, gun in hand, seemingly frozen, as a walker stumbled towards him.

"Christian!" she shouted. Just as the walker reached him, Jim appeared, scooping the boy up and moving him out of the way. Carol lifted him into her arms just as the others returned to camp and began killing the walkers, one by one. She and Lori held the children close and waited until the gunfire had stopped before finally relaxing their hold.

"Dad!" Carl shouted as he ran to Rick.

"Are you okay?" Carol asked the little boy in her arms, "Did it bite you?"

Christian shook his head, bottom lip trembling, before he burst into tears.

"I'm sorry!" he cried.

"Shhh, it's okay," Carol hushed him, holding both him and her daughter close.

"Christian!"

She looked up to see Daryl walking towards them and released her grip on the boy.

"Daddy!" he held his arms and Daryl lifted him easily, holding the boy tight.

"Shhh, it's a'right buddy," Daryl murmured.

"I'm sorry daddy!" Christian said, crying harshly.

"Shhh, the hell're ya sorry for?" Daryl asked.

"I got scared!" Christian cried, pulling back to look at his dad, "I got the gun you left, but I couldn't do it! I got scared!"

"That's a'right bud, ye don't gotta be sorry," Daryl said, "Yer allowed ta be scared bud, it's a'right now. It's over." He looked over at Carol and Sophia.

"Ye a'right?" he asked and Carol nodded.

"I didn't notice he was gone until he had already run off," she said, "I'm-"

"Don't say it," Daryl cut her off, "Sick of all these sorrys. Ain't no one's fault. All we can do now is deal with it an' move on." She nodded and looked down at Sophia, kissing the top of her daughter's head.

"C'mon," Daryl said, tilting his head. He led them over to the others and stood with the rest of the group.

What Daryl said was true. They needed to deal with what had happened and move on. But how?"

**Sorry to anyone who had voted for Amy and Ed to live. Their fate was pretty much sealed in both stories from the get go, but I still wanted to give you guys a chance to vote on them.**

**Also, I will be including the most recent deaths in the poll tomorrow so go vote if you want certain people to live! I'll also be removing any characters who have died in both stories up to this point.**

**Thanks so much for voting and let me know what you think!**


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